WASHINGTON, February 28, 2013 - Today the World Bank Board of Directors approved a loan of US$50 million to the People’s Republic of China to improve the capacity of the main navigation channel and enhance... Show More + the operational management capacity of the Meizhou Bay Harbor. Fast growth of overseas trade has led to substantial increase in the total tonnage handled by China’s seaports in the last two decades. China now has nine of the twenty busiest seaports in the world. Located in southeast Fujian Province, Meizhou Bay is already a substantial bulk port handling nearly 40 million tons of freight (2010) including crude oil, building materials, coal and oil products as well as iron ore, grain, and timber at 46 berths spread over four port areas. The forecast expects traffic in Meizhou Bay to increase to about 177 million tons by 2020, and 250 million tons by 2030. To meet this increase in traffic, the new Fujian Meizhou Bay Navigation Improvement Project will upgrade the main navig Show Less -

ChallengeWhen the Private Sector Development Capacity Building Project (PSDCB) was being designed in 2003/2004, Ethiopia was in transition from a system in which the state was heavily involved in almost... Show More + all production and distribution activities. The government was implementing the first generation of reforms necessary to remove the main bottlenecks to private sector development (PSD) and to create pre-conditions for growth with the recognition that the plan should be selective and needs to have a multifaceted approach to PSD in order to:improve the investment climateincrease the pace of implementation of the PSD reform agenda, andcreate an environment that adequately promotes improvements in firms’ skills and productivity.At a sectoral level, the main challenges were:a dominant public sectorweak integration of the Ethiopian economy into the regional and international economylow labor productivity and thus limited capacity of the private sector to compete, andweak institutional support Show Less -

Central America has yet to reach its trade potentialTrade in Central America has grown significantly over the past decade, especially after the negotiation and signing of trade agreements among countries... Show More + and as a regional bloc with other markets. As a result, trade in the region grew 8% (as a share of GDP) between 2000 and 2011. Intra-regional trade has also increased. For most Central American countries, the isthmus is now the second leading export market.However, economic studies indicate that logistics and transport obstacles still limit Central America’s trade potential. Several World Bank studies have shown that the high costs of domestic transport, together with bottlenecks at border crossings, are the main obstacles for trade among Central American countries and with other markets around the world.According to this research, the lack of quality secondary roads, costly land transport services and lengthy customs clearance procedures are the main hindrances to trade. These logisti Show Less -

A Quick LookAccording to the study, Central American exports are concentrated in relatively low value-added products such as textiles, coffee, sugar, car parts and shrimp. Below, the main export characteristics... Show More + of these countries:Costa RicaIn the last two decades, Costa Rica’s trade balance has not changed significantly. Compared to its neighbors, its trade deficit in the last five years has been low — 5% of GDP. It went from being an exporter of fruit, vegetables and textiles to a current portfolio that includes high tech products such as integrated circuits, computer parts and medical equipment. Its main export partner is the EU, which accounted for a third of this country’s exports between 2006 and 2008.El SalvadorIts annual export growth rate is the lowest in the region. Despite an influx of remittances from abroad compensating these numbers, it still exhibits a substantial trade deficit: approximately 20% of GDP. The country’s big break has been in diversifying the product portfol Show Less -

More Time, More CostOn the border between Costa Rica and Nicaragua, there normally is a long line of trucks waiting their turn to present their paperwork. Furthermore, the parking lot opposite the... Show More + customs office is full of vehicles waiting to regularize their documentation and continue their journey. Experts point out that “the waiting time on the San Jose-Managua road border crossing at Peñas Blancas — for an empty return — is 24 hours, or around 22% of the total trip duration on average.” This scenario is common to almost all Central American border crossings. While waiting, perishable products such as milk, beef, fruit and vegetables must be kept refrigerated in trucks, resulting not only in a great loss of time, but of fuel as well. The time it takes to travel from one destination to another is not only affected by unpredictable customs procedures, but also by other factors: congestion in and around urban areas, the impossibility of traveling at night due to public safet Show Less -

New UN ESCAP-World Bank Database shows the trend is Getting WorseWASHINGTON, February 6, 2013 --- Although the international economy has integrated considerably in recent decades, a new database developed... Show More + jointly by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the World Bank reveals that trade costs fall disproportionately on developing countries.Although developing countries are becoming more integrated into the world trading system in an absolute sense, they are starting from a higher baseline and their relative position is deteriorating because the rest of the world is moving more quickly.The new Trade Costs database uses an innovative method to estimate trade costs in agriculture and manufactured goods, opening new analytical possibilities for policymakers and researchers interested in trade integration. According to the research, trade costs are influenced to varying degrees by distance and transport costs, tariff and non-tariff measures, Show Less -

ChallengeThe aftermath of Rwanda’s devastating 1994 Genocide brought about a new government dedicated to moving towards a liberal, market-based economy to transition the country from conflict and emergency... Show More + to peace and sustainable development. However, administrative and regulatory constraints, legal and judicial impediments, a weak financial sector, weak SME institutions, and a lack of innovation and competitiveness all stunted Rwanda’s potential private sector development and growth. Infrastructure supporting telecommunications, postal, water, and power services was inefficient, costly, and controlled by monopolistic public enterprises. The electricity sector required privatization and the National Post Office was in financial duress. Finally, the tea sector suffered from high costs and low yields, despite contributing to a third of total exports and being one of the few sectors providing regular cash income to farmers at the start of the project.SolutionThe CEDP worked to remove leg Show Less -

Washington, D.C. – The South Asia Regional Art Exhibition "Imagining our Future Together" organized by the World Bank will open on Jan. 22, at World Bank headquarters.South Asia is the least... Show More + integrated region in the world, and more and better regional cooperation will help the region to realize its full potential. Breaking barriers is not only about economics and trade of goods and services. Art has the potential to connect people and countries. To take this vision forward, the World Bank’s South Asia vice presidency and the World Bank Art Program organized a regional competition for young South Asian artists in 2012. It received more than 1,000 entries from 231 talented young artists born after 1974 inspired by the idea of a more integrated region.The theme for the competition was creating a vision for a common future and showcasing the unique beauty, creativity, and challenges of South Asia. Forty-four artworks by the 25 winners of the competition are being exhibited here. Show Less -

Returning to my Blog after much travel, I recently read that Serbia wants to keep import duties on 453 agriculture and food products from the EU. The argument says this will protect Serbia’s agricultural... Show More + sector which will not be able to compete with European companies. But can we be sure it is in the interest of Serbian citizens?Let me first explain what I am talking about. Under the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) signed with EU in 2004 Serbia must phase out tariffs on industrial and most agriculture products from the EU by 2014. As we are approaching the effectiveness date of the agreement, many interested groups are claiming they will not be able to cope with competition from the EU from 2014.Maybe, indeed, when Serbia entered into this commitment, it expected to join the EU earlier than it will. However, it may be hard to argue that the sector did not have plenty of time, and could not have done much more in a decade to prepare for this time. The question is: who is g Show Less -

Kathuria explained that the people of both nations, especially those in their poor and isolated border regions, will benefit enormously if barriers to cross-border trade are reduced and ultimately dismantled.... Show More + “If trade is made easier, Bangladeshi enterprises can grasp new opportunities to ramp up their exports to India. They can benefit from India’s vast markets as well as its investments and technology, while Bangladeshi workers can gain from more and better jobs,” said Kathuria. “This will help Bangladesh increase its growth rate from 6 to 8% per annum and bring it closer to fulfilling its aspiration of attaining middle-income status by 2021.” India stands to benefit too. Bangladesh, with some 150 million people, presents a large and growing market for India’s entrepreneurs. Indian companies can gain from Bangladesh’s competitive labor and lower costs of production to form a common value chain that is beneficial to all. And, in helping Bangladesh’s economy grow, economic a Show Less -

NEW DELHI – Economic ties between India and Bangladesh are far below potential. Greater access to each other’s markets, improvements in physical connectivity and transit, and energy trade between India... Show More + and Bangladesh can help unlock this trade potential, says a new World Bank study.The study titled “Unlocking Bangladesh-India Trade: Emerging Potential and the Way Forward” says greater engagement in these areas can also stimulate employment and other economic and social activities, which in turn would help reduce poverty (particularly in the border areas), enhance foreign direct investment (FDI) flows, and generate new business opportunities for the private sector. “Today, South Asia is one of the least integrated regions in the world. Greater bilateral economic cooperation between India and Bangladesh can serve as a critical step for an integrated South Asia,” said Isabel Guerrero, the World Bank’s vice president for the South Asia region. India is one of Bangladesh‘s prima Show Less -

Support from the World BankThe World Bank, in partnership with Australia, the European Union and Germany, supported the WTO accession process for Laos directly under the Trade Development Facility Multi... Show More + Donor Trust Fund. This included providing financial support to the direct costs of negotiations, including the last five working party negotiations in Geneva. Resources from the Trade Development Facility have also been used to support the drafting of several legal texts in key areas, the holding of bilateral negotiations, and technical assistance to the negotiating team. Sector impact studies in professional services, distribution services, financial services, transport, and telecommunications have also been produced to support the accession process.The World Bank also supported the creation of the Lao PDR Trade Portal, a website that gives traders the information they need for importing and exporting goods. This online platform allowed Laos to meet WTO Trade Facilitation Ag Show Less -

Lao PDR - Second Trade Development Facility ProjectIDA Grant: US$4 million equivalentProject ID: P130512Project Description: The objective of the project is to support the implementation of the government's... Show More + trade and integration priorities outlined in the 2012 Diagnostic Trade Integration Study, or DTIS roadmap, and in particular contribute to improved competitiveness and diversification, focusing outside the natural resource sectors. Show Less -

Visions that transcend bordersThough the 25 winning artists are from different backgrounds and use a variety of media and styles, their work has one thing is common. Each artwork tells the story of individual... Show More + countries and the reality seen through their eyes, while expressing a strong willingness to reject isolation and work beyond borders for a more integrated South Asia."As regional cooperation is gaining traction, creative artistic expression has a huge role in bringing about social and cultural change by connecting the young artists across the region," Guerrero said. "We hope this exhibition will be a seed for many more regional shows and networks of artists in the future."The exhibition gives the artists an opportunity to network with each other, exchange ideas, and set the stage for future collaborations. At a time when most artists seek to exhibit their works in the West, Manjunath Honnapura from India appreciated the opportunity to visit neighborin Show Less -

WASHINGTON, October 24, 2012 –A new World Bank report says that Africa’s farmers can potentially grow enough food to feed the continent and avert future food crises if countries remove cross-border restrictions... Show More + on the food trade within the region. According to the Bank, the continent would also generate an extra US$20 billion in yearly earnings if African leaders can agree to dismantle trade barriers that blunt more regional dynamism. The report was released on the eve of an African Union (AU) ministerial summit in Addis Ababa on agriculture and trade.With as many as 19 million people living with the threat of hunger and malnutrition in West Africa’s Sahel region, the Bank report urges African leaders to improve trade so that food can move more freely between countries and from fertile areas to those where communities are suffering food shortages. The World Bank expects demand for food in Africa to double by the year 2020 as people increasingly leave the countryside and move to t Show Less -

“In 2009 the Government of Panama established a development strategic plan for the medium and long term, and the Reverted Areas are a key part of this development, since the Panama Canal expansion will... Show More + bring a radical change to logistics around the globe”, said Juan Carlos Orillac, Secretary General of the Reverted Assets Administrative Unit of the Ministry of Economy and Finance.Suggested usesTo design the strategy, 65 experts on logistics and human development were surveyed, focusing on 22 economic activities that can yield high impacts for the Panamanian economy. This set of activities was reduced to six priority activities: warehousing and added-value logistics, distribution centers for ship parts, terminals for maritime industries and passenger cruises, shipyards and residential development.Other studies were also carried out to determine the demand for these priority activities and the suitability of each of the six selected reverted areas was assessed. These sites (Davis/Brazos, Show Less -

Vasu is not the only beneficiary. Delhi native Lakshmi, an IT system designer, had previously been shut out of South Asian markets because of low Internet penetration and expensive intra-regional calls.... Show More + Connectivity also means that clean energy from Central and South Asia is lighting the homes of Azin in Herat and most South Asians. A decade ago, 40 percent of the population was in the dark and most with grid connection suffered daily power cuts.Presently, regional borders are hurting South Asia’s economic growth by penalizing efficient trade routes. Only two borders – Afghanistan/Pakistan and India/Nepal – are open to trucks. And then there is the plethora of paperwork. Complying with trade restrictions in South Asia takes an average of 30 days, compared to 20 days in Latin America and only 11 days in OECD countries. Container shipment within South Asia costs 25 percent more than within Latin America and 50 percent more than within OECD. These border issues result in circuitous routes Show Less -

Dhaka, Bangladesh ─ The South Asia Regional Art Exhibition "Imagining Our Future Together" organized by the World Bank was inaugurated in the city today. The exhibition unites 25 artists... Show More + from Afghanistan, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, as well as three artists from Bangladesh. The World Bank organized the regional art competition earlier this year for young South Asian artists born after 1975 with the view of creating a vision for a common future and showcasing the unique beauty, creativity, and challenges of South Asia.The competition "Imagining our Future Together" received more than 1,000 entries from talented young artists inspired by the idea of a more integrated region. The exhibit showcases 42 winning artworks by 25 finalists and later will travel to other South Asian countries and the United States."In building a common vision for a more prosperous future in South Asia, young artists and other yout Show Less -

South Asia has experienced a long period of robust economic growth, averaging 6 percent a year over the past 20 years. This strong growth has translated into declining poverty and impressive improvements... Show More + in human development. Still, the South Asia region is home to many of the developing world’s poor. According to the World Bank’s most recent poverty estimates, about 571 million people in the region survive on less than $1.25 a day, and they make up more than 44 percent of the developing world’s poor.As referenced in the June 2012 Global Economic Prospects, growth in South Asia slowed to 7.1 percent in 2011 from 8.6 percent in 2010, as the Euro area crisis caused a steep deceleration in exports and a reversal of portfolio inflows. Growth in India was particularly weak due to monetary policy, stalled reforms, and electricity shortages, which, along with fiscal and inflation concerns, cut into investment activity. Relatively resilient remittances and good harvests have supported consumpt Show Less -